36: A Month of Summer

A Month of Summer by Lisa Wingate, is the story of Rebecca, who leaves her law practice and husband to take care of her aging father and despised stepmother. She comes with a huge chip on her shoulder, but when she arrives and begins slowly unraveling the years of neglect that have occurred, she stays longer than expected, finds that she enjoys her stepbrother, and tries to make peace with her family.

This book was good, and I loved it until about the last 30 pages. Then, it wrapped up too neatly for me. I didn’t like the ending at all (well, I liked it, but I thought it was impractical). I felt so bad for the brother and the dad and when the truth about her family comes out, I felt so bad for Rebecca because she had missed out on so much.

I give this book a 6/10. I think I would have rated it higher if the last part of the book had been written better, but if it felt rushed and smashed together. I wish there was more information about the end and what happens to the characters.

35: The Kitchen House

The Kitchen House, by Kathleen Grissom, was one of those books that was recommended to me a while ago (thanks, Sarah!) and I kept putting off reading it because I knew I was not going to like it and whoa. I was wrong. I FLEW through this book, hardly remembering to feed my child or leave the house every day. I think I finished it in a day. Seriously. I sat in a parking lot and read it just to get a little farther. I absolutely devoured this book, and while it’s not happy (it reminded me of Little Bee with the sadness), I still loved this book.

The Kitchen House is the story of a white girl, Lavinia, who is orphaned on a ship coming from Ireland. Instead of moving into “the big house” with the other white people when she arrives at the plantation, she is sent to live in the kitchen house with the black women. She learns about family and love and of the incredible differences in lifestyles between these two groups of people in this time.

This book completely follows the “what if” questions. What if Lavinia had married someone else? What if the papers had been served earlier? What if… what if… what if?

I give this book a 9/10. While the book is depressing and overwhelming at times, I absolutely devoured it and would think it’s a fantastic book for a book club to read, because the questions that could be asked about what could have been are absolutely amazing.

32: Rescue

Rescue, by Anita Shreve, tells the story of Peter Webster, who after helping at the scene of a drunken crash, falls madly in love with the woman, Sheila, who caused the accident. Their affair is brief and intense and they end up having a child together.

The story goes back and forth between present-day and the previous 18 years. Sheila is not involved anymore with Rowan, their daughter, and as the story progresses, you find out the reasons that have kept Sheila away.

I liked this book. I thought it was well written and it kept my attention. I cried in parts, and got mad in parts. I didn’t love the ending, as it wrapped up a little too neatly for me. But overall, I enjoyed the book. I give it a 7/10 and hope that you want to read it too!

27: Pictures of You

Pictures of You by Caroline Leavitt plays the “what-if” game. What if you got in a car wreck and accidentally killed someone? What if you were leaving your husband? What if your child knew and saw all of this?

The story weaves through the aftermath of such a disaster, where the mother of a young child dies, but he sees it all, and then the woman who hit the car (accidentally) starts a relationship with the boy’s father and weaves her way into their life.

I don’t think this book had a climax. I have really liked Caroline Leavitt’s other books, but this one was lacking. I found the main characters annoying and while this event was certainly traumatic, I don’t think it would define and change your life forever. Maybe I’m wrong – I hope I never have to find out – but I don’t think it would. I had a really hard time finishing this book and believe I ended it with, “OHMYGOD JUST MOVE ON ALREADY” mentality and found that the ending was thrown together without much thought.

I give this one a 6/10. I expected more, and was disappointed.

25: The Art of Racing in the Rain

The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein, tells the story of life through the eyes of a dog who is living his last days on earth. Enzo has been a faithful companion for many years, through thick and thin, to his owner Denny. Named after a racing car company, Enzo and Denny watch hours of racing footage on TV, as Denny tries to get his big break in racing, and when Denny marries Eve, Enzo steps aside, but knows he is still valued in the family. Denny and Eve have a baby, Zoe, and the family is so happy. Then Enzo smells something bad happening in Eve, but he has no way to warn his family. The something bad tears the family apart, and causes Denny and Zoe great pain for a long time. And, with the clarity of Budda, Enzo continues to tell the story of their life together. 

I cried from chapter one in this book. But, I absolutely loved it. The analogies to life are astounding, and I think you could make a case that this book should be required reading for college students around the globe. I am most certainly a dog-lover, but not necessarily a race-car lover and I still loved this book. I give this book a solid 9/10, because everyone should read this book. 

One of my favorite quotes from the book is, “Racing is about discipline and intelligence, not about who has the heavier foot. The one who drives smart will always win in the end.” Such truer words have never been spoken.

9: Coming Back to Me

Coming Back to Me, by Caroline Leavitt is a story about a man and a woman who fall in love at first sight (in a diner) and then get married and have a baby. Neither the wife nor husband comes from any type of cohesive family, and so they have this “us against them” mentality. Well, right after Molly gives birth, she falls into a coma and Gary has to learn to take care of the baby, his incredibly sick wife and also accept help from strangers. 

I felt… depressed while reading this book. A lot of storylines were discussed, with very little wrapup about them. What happened to Molly’s mom?  How much time are we talking about? How long was Molly in the coma? How old is the baby when she comes home? Is she ever okay? Does the baby always prefer her sister, his primary caretaker for so long? 

I’ll admit… the concept of being very ill or dying during or after childbirth is so scary to me. I was terrified when I had high blood pressure after I had Ryan and we stayed in the hospital longer. So, maybe I read this a little detached. But still, I feel like there could have been more information given throughout the book. I give this a 6/10. A solid read, but not one I would come back to again.